Culture Clash: The Team Head To London
by PhoebeWilliams
Summary: An urgent case brings the CBI team across the pond to the historic city of London. They must work closely with their English partners in Law Enforcement; romance, humour and chaos ensues. How will they cope being so far from home?
1. Chapter 1

**I know i should be working on my Fractured story, experiencing a bad case of writer's block, but this idea just popped into my head and I simply had to do something about it before it escaped. As a British fan of The Mentalist I would love to see what would happen if they ever made their way over here for a case. This is set about 18 months after the S3 finale after all the dust has settled. Every team member will get some romance on this trip in some form and i promise there will be Jisbon moments. Reviews please : ), plus If you have anything you would like to see the team do whilst in London then let me know and I'll do my best to incorporate it. Happy reading!**

**Disclaimer: I not own The Mentalist or any of its characters, the members of the MET that you will meet in the next chapter are my own creation though. **

Chapter One

As the team stepped off the plane after a ten-hour flight, they were given a traditional English welcome... a thunderstorm. It certainly made a change from the stifling California heat that they had all become accustomed to.

Barely seconds after making their way off the air-craft, Lisbon and her team became utterly soaked to the skin; everybody, that is, expect Patrick Jane who was suddenly sporting a large waterproof coat that appeared out of no-where.

As he looked around to take in his new surroundings, he could not help but let out a contained laugh at his colleagues who had all come so un-prepared.

'What, nobody else brought wet-weather gear?' he asked with the usual tone of mockery laden in his voice.

This comment earned him four angry glares from four people who were slowly beginning to resemble drowned rats. Van-Pelt was quickly fixing her long red hair into a ponytail in order to prevent the frizzing that was inevitable when hair such as hers got wet. Cho turned his attentions to the small child getting off the plane, the same who had kicked the back of his chair since they had taken off from LAX airport; one stoic stare from the agent was enough for ginger-haired boy to lose the smirk grin he had been sporting and quickly grasp his mother's arm. Rigsby, on the other hand, was simply rummaging around in his carry-on bag; no doubt looking for something to eat, despite the fact that during the flight he had already gone through two massive bags of chips, a meatball sub and one of those giant Toberlerone bars that you only ever seemed to get at airports. Jane had made some comment that this constant need for food meant that Rigsby's favourite story growing up must have been the hungry caterpillar, and subconsciously he thought that one day, if he ate enough, then he would turn into the beautiful butterfly. This resulted in laughter from the team, apart from Rigsby who seemed a little hurt, and astonished, by these comments and the surprising truth behind them.

As they made their way across the runway to the arrival lounge Lisbon remained quiet. She was irritable and cranky; she had always hated flying, avoiding it at all costs. Once they got inside Heathrow airport she let out a groan and the long queue at immigration that they had to wait in, like civilians, being in the CBI carried no weight over here in London; no special treatment for them. Jane looked over at her, she was soaked through, her hair sticking to the sides of her face, her clothes wet-through, and he could tell by the disgruntled and uncomfortable look on her face that her socks were probably sodden with water. A sensible man would just leave her to stew. But Jane wasn't sensible; he liked winding her up too much.

'Ah Rule Brittania!' he sang loudly, garnering some comical looks from passers' by, 'What's wrong Lisbon? I am getting the slightest, tiniest, feeling that you're not happy about our little trip over the pond.'

She replied instantaneously in her usual sarcastic tone that he would never tire of hearing of. 'Oh I'm great, ecstatic even. I loved getting woken up at the crack of dawn with a phone call from Bertrem telling us that an urgent case means we have to get to London ASAP leaving us with no time to prepare or pack properly.' She gestured out of the window at the grey skies and the apparent monsoon that was happening, 'I mean seriously, it's the middle of august! Have these people not heard of the summer season.'

Jane couldn't help but form a large smile on his face. Lisbon was such a control freak, that even the notion of unpredictable weather made her so angry. At least it gave her something to talk about whilst here; the Brits, of course, loved talking about the weather.

'Well Lisbon, seasons don't tend to exist here. And may I ask why exactly are we here?'

'You're kidding me right? Didn't you listen to my briefing on the flight?'

'Not really. Too much effort.'

'So you have no idea what we're doing here? You just thought we were off on a jolly to the UK did you?'

'Meh, I didn't really care for the details to be honest.' Jane replied nonchalantly, 'What can I say? You call me up at four in the morning, tell me to pack my passport and a bag and that we were going to London. Frankly my head's still spinning now Lisbon.'

She clearly wasn't in the mood for their usual banter and she just rolled her eyes as she rummaged for her passport as they drew closer to the front of the line.

'Well i guess i'll just have to brief you in the car on our way to the MET headquarters.' She sighed.

'What? We're going straight their?' Van Pelt squealed behind them. 'But boss we're soaked to the skin. Can we not just quickly go to our hotel and change into something dry?'

'No' she barked back a little harsher than necessary, but her wet socks were really starting to get to her. She turned her head and shot an apologetic look towards Grace before continuing to speak in a softer, more approachable voice. 'Listen, I really want to get out of these clingy wet clothes just as much as you do,' this comment made all three of their male colleagues blush like school boys, which thankfully went unnoticed by both Lisbon and Van-Pelt, 'but I'm afraid we have to get straight to Scotland Yard. You're aware of how serious this case is; we can't afford to lose any time.'

Grace nodded in understanding, albeit disappointment. As much as she was uncomfortable in her wet clothes, she also didn't want any potentially hot Englishmen to see her looking in such a state. She caught a glimpse at Jane who had sussed out her motives and gave her a boyish wink.

Over an hour later and they had finally made their way through immigration, customs, and baggage claim; flying was always so much hassle. Lisbon quickly turned back into business mode and led the way towards the exits.

'The MET have sent two cars to pick us up. Cho, Rigsby you take one and on the way ring our hotel to make sure we actually have beds for the next week, at least, along with internet access. Van-Pelt, Jane you're with me. I'll brief Jane about the case so far while you, Van Pelt can find out just who we will be working with on this case.'

'Yes boss.' Cho, Rigsby and Van Pelt all replied in perfect unison and they proceeded to follow her towards the exit doors. Jane, however, remained glued to the spot and it took Lisbon a few seconds to realise that he was not trailing after her like the others. She swiftly spun on the spot wearing her, _Please don't make this day more difficult, Jane,' look on her face_.' Before she could say anything, he spoke.

'You can't expect me to meet our colonial cousins in law enforcement with you lot looking like you've taken a bath in a dirty puddle. I mean we're representing the best that California has to offer.'

Lisbon took another sigh, 'Jane, like i've already explained, we simply don't have...' her voiced tailed off as he held up his carry-on bag like it was Santa's sack full of toys.

'Quite right Lisbon we don't have the time for you all to root around in your suitcases and spend ages deciding on what to wear, which is why I have done that for you. You can quickly change in the bathroom; the toilet facilities in airports are always meticulously clean.' He then proceeded to pull out four carrier bags, each containing a set of clothing for his four colleagues. As he chucked the corresponding bags at them their faces lit up, including Lisbon's, once they peeked inside and realised what he had done. Each bag contained a new outfit, complete with socks.

'But how- I mean when did you...?' Lisbon asked, all the while trying to suppress the smile that was forming itself on her face.

'Well Lisbon they have these things called clothes stores, and while you were all walking around the airport like zombies i decided to be pro-active and plan ahead. I knew that none of you would dress appropriately for such conditions. For police officers you really do lack the most basic common sense skills.'

'Gee thanks man,' Rigsby exclaimed like an excitable child on Christmas morning, he rummaged around in his bag, pulling out a small, blue plastic ball with a zipper around it. 'Uh what the hell is this?'

The rest of team looked equally perplexed as they pulled out their balls of varying colours. Cho had a dark green one, Van-Pelt red and Lisbon bright pink.

'Unzip them and you'll find out.' Jane replied simply. And as Rigsby unzipped the ball, a mass of material sprung out to reveal a full-length water-proof coat, complete with a hood that resembled the black one Jane had been wearing.

'This weather shows no sign of relenting and a dry work force is a happy one. And yes Lisbon that was the only colour they had left,' he said as he noticed Lisbon's nose flare up in disgust at the garish colour of her coat that most definitely was not the only colour that they had left.

Amongst the collective thanks from the team, Cho stood there, stoic as ever, and Patrick knew exactly what he was thinking.

'Hang on, if you brought these at the airport before we left then why didn't you simply give them to us before we got off the plane and got drenched by this god-forsaken weather?'

'Well that's gratitude for you', he continued in his mock tone of disbelief which was met with stern glares from the team, 'I buy you all a whole new outfit complete with warm, dry comfy socks and you all focus on the tiny mistake I made by forgetting to simply just hand you the coats in the first place.'

Then before he knew it Lisbon had lobbed her pink, soft ball of material straight for his temple. He picked it up and smiled; London wasn't gonna know what had hit it.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two:

The car journey through London was a pleasant one; now that the women were dry and warm they became remarkably less cranky. Jane was pleased with himself with his choice of outfits for the two female agents. Granted there was a lack of choice at the shops in the airport; but nonetheless he had done well. He had got them both the same form-fitting sweater dress but in different colours; for Van Pelt he had selected a gorgeous deep red that went perfectly with her hair, which she had spent a bloody long time styling into a plat in the airport bathroom when they were getting changed.

For Lisbon however, he had gone in a different direction; there had been a beautiful forest green coloured sweater dress, which he almost selected, but that would have been far too obvious. It's true that green was a great colour on her but instead he chose a deep blue one, just knowing that it would go perfectly with her features. He wasn't wrong, the colour complimented her raven hair, now styled into a bun courtesy of Van-Pelt; it also seemed to bring out the colour of her eyes, make them shine a deeper shade of green than he had previously noticed as well as making her lips appear to be a darker shade of red than normal. He sat, transfixed and slightly worried about why he was getting so much pleasure out of staring at Lisbon's face, which was currently buried in a case-file.

'Thanks ever so much for the clothes Jane,' Van Pelt said sweetly, snapping Jane out of his weird, little trance centred on Lisbon. _Boy, that was a weird moment_, he thought to himself.

'You're very welcome Grace.' He replied with a wide grin. Van Pelt was such a lovely, polite girl and he loved to see her smile that he almost felt bad about constantly teasing her about having such a naive view of the world. 'You feel warm now, am I right?'

'Soooooo toasty!', she exclaimed and stroked the tights that Jane had purchased to team up with the dresses. 'These tights are amazing!'

'They're thermal tights, specially designed to keep you warm without being too bulky. I'm glad you like them.'

They continued their conversation until Lisbon, who had remained virtually silent up until that point, switched the boss mode on again. 'Van Pelt can you please do that research that I asked you to carry out and Jane you need to listen carefully while I brief you on the case... _again_.'

Once Van Pelt began typing away on the tiny laptop that she pulled out from her bag, Lisbon started running down the case that had brought them to the other side of the Atlantic, 'Right yesterday the metropolitan police were called to investigate the murder of some rich aristocrat; Lord Farnley. He was found dead in his Mayfair home, strapped to his chair with a single bullet to the head. And get this,' he loved in when she got all serious and business like, 'ballistics have found that the weapon used to kill Farnley was the same gun that killed Senator Hartley.'

Suddenly the penny dropped and Patrick understood why they had to be here. They had investigated the murder of Senator Hartley just over a month ago but had not succeeded in finding the killer. No trace of DNA evidence anywhere and weeks of questioning had unearthed no viable suspects. It was frustrating to say the least for the team who usually closed every case that came their way. They had almost given up hope until evidence emerged linking Hartley to Red John.

It had been almost two years since Jane killed Red John, but he was by no means out of his life. Red John had numerous friends in high places and the CBI were determined to track down his network of allies who had managed to keep him from justice all these years.

'A United States senator and an English Lord? Man he really was connected; would love to see his address book someday.' He said with as much humour as he could muster.

'You and me both.' She retorted. 'Van Pelt, any news on who we will be working with on this investigation?'

'Well I've generated a list of names but the internet is acting up so I can't get photo's or background checks. We'll be working with the CID; that's the criminal investigation department so basically the English version of us, led by DCI Harry Grimshaw. Other members of the team are DI Colin Dashwood, DS Samantha Jones and DC Nicola Green.'

'Ugh I'll never remember that,' Lisbon yawned, closed her eyes and slumped back now that there was nothing to do but sit in traffick and wait for the hard work to start.

This plan of hers to rest was short-lived as Jane prodded her arm like a toddler vying for the attention of his mother; and much to her surprise Van Pelt joined in.

'Look boss, look.' The young agent pointed out of the window towards Big Ben and the houses of parliament. Teresa couldn't help but gawp at the magnificent buildings she was now driving past. She had seen them numerous times of the news but they really were quite a remarkable sight up-close. 'Oh and Westminster Abbey where William and Kate got married,' Grace continued to squeal like a teenager.

Jane smiled to himself at the effect this historic city was having on these two women. He could tell that Grace had always wanted to come here ever since she was a child and was probably hoping to live out her little fairytale whilst here. And hell, she deserved to be swept off her feet ever since that ugly business with O'Laughlin.

Teresa remained speechless, which fascinated him. She had obviously never been out of the country before; she was an all-American girl through and through. Even though this trip was for work, and on a very serious case, he was determined to give her a fun vacation for the first time in her life; take her to the sights and open her eyes to all of the wonderful things that London had to offer. After all, the city held some great memories for him.

'You've been here before haven't you?' Lisbon asked, recognising the look of fondness that he would get in his eyes when recalling a pleasant memory from his past.

'Just once, not long after charlotte was born,' he rarely spoke of his wife and daughter, but now that he had avenged their deaths he found it easier to talk about them, 'we took a family trip here and I was asked to do a psychic reading for a member of the Royal Family.'

He looked over at the girls whose collective jaws had dropped. He loved dropping in those little shockers every now and then; just when they thought that they knew everything about him.

'Oh my god,' Grace gasped, 'did you get to go to Buckingham Palace?'

'Never mind that, which member of the family did you con into thinking you could speak to dead people? Please don't say it was the Queen.' Lisbon interjected.

'Lisbon, I couldn't possibly say even if I wanted to- they made me sign the official secrets act. But yes it was at Buckingham Palace. Ever wondered how an American man such as me became such a lover of tea?'

'No way! You had tea at Buckingham palace?' Van Pelt was clearly picturing her friend and colleague hob nobing with royalty; loving every minute of it.

'Indeed, and served to me by a butler. Before that, I had hated tea but you can't exactly turn around to a member of the royal family and ask for a coffee instead. And let's just say that the tea was so good that I've been addicted ever since.'

'I bet your wife and daughter loved it.' Lisbon added with a warm smile now planted on her face. She loved it when he talked about the good times in his life; before all the hurt and sorrow.

'Well Charlotte was barely six months old but Angela LOVED it. She kept curtseying to everybody, and I mean _everybody;_ even the staff, it was so funny.'

The three of them sat in comfortable silence for a few minutes, drinking in their surroundings until curiosity got the better of Van Pelt.

'Please tell us who it was Jane, pretty please? We're sworn officers of the law you can trust us.'

Just at that moment, the car pulled up outside Scotland Yard. They were all set for their London adventure.


	3. Chapter 3

**Wow, thanks for all the hits, reviews and subscriptions so far guys; makes my day. I love hearing your feedback so please review and let me know if there is anything specific you would like to see happen in your story. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own the mentalist, sadly. **

**Chapter Three**

DCI Harry Grimshaw was nervous for the first time in a very long time. After all, it wasn't everyday that you had to share a murder investigation with a top team from sunny California. As he glanced outside his office window at the rain, he couldn't help but wonder how this team would react to a sudden change in their weather conditions.

He saw the two hire cars pull up outside, containing these CBI agents and he sprang to his feet and stuck his head out of his office and called out to his team members. 'Dashwood, Jones, Green, look sharp the yanks are here.'

He chuckled to himself to see the high level of excitement that the visitors were causing in the office. Sure there was bound to be an adjustment period for the two teams, both used to different methods, but it was a challenge and why become a police officer if you weren't excited by the prospect of a challenge?

'Coming boss?' Nicola, the newest addition to his team asked as she popped her head around the door.

'Yeah, sure I'll be there in a minute. Hey, thanks for the research you did on our visitors. It always helps to know as much about these people as possible. You did a great job.'

'Thanks boss,' her sunny face lit up with the compliment, 'but honestly it wasn't that difficult. Do you know just how many files there are on this Patrick Jane guy? He's practically famous.'

'Well we've all heard about his antics.' Harry sighed, how this man managed to make such an impression thousands of miles away. He was already dreading the amount of paperwork he faced in the wake of working with the infamous Mr. Jane. 'Just don't go falling for his charms Nikki,' he warned. He felt like a big brother to young detective and extremely protective over her, as well as over the other members of his team.

'Oh please,' she dismissed him easily, 'I've managed to resist Dashwood all this time, I think I can handle myself. It should be me warning you.'

'Oh, really? How so?'

'Oh come on,' she rolled her eyes at his stupidity, 'you saw their pictures on the file I gave you. Those two female agents are incredibly beautiful; I'd hate to see you get your heartbroken boss.' She mocked his previous tone of concern.

'Well I can guarantee you that I will not get my heartbroken.'

'Come on let's go meet them,' Nikki bounced up and down like an excitable teenager, 'Jones and Dashwood have already headed down there and do we really want the CBI to be greeted by little Miss Moody and Mr Fancy Pants; way to enforce their dated stereotypes about us British.'

'Fair point.'

And with that they headed down to the reception area to greet the CBI team who certain to make a big impact.

'There's no way she could resist my charms. It's a well known fact that British women go crazy for American men.'

Cho shot a quizzical expression at his friend as they stood in the reception area of Scotland yard. 'You're an idiot.' He deadpanned in his usual way.

'Ah come on man!', Rigsby protested, 'You don't think I could do it?'

'No. No i don't think you could pull Pippa Middleton.'

Jane laughed at the interaction between Cho and Rigsby; those guys were just like a comedy double act in their own way.

'Hush, the pair of you.' Lisbon said as they made their way to the reception area of Scotland yard. Jane couldn't help but feel sorry for her; she looked like a little lost lamb, still trying to maintain her authority even though she clearly didn't have a clue where she was or what to do. She looked kind of adorable at this very moment in time.

The reception area of Scotland Yard was abuzz with activity; full of people and faces that they didn't recognise. The building itself was quite impressive to behold but the steel decor didn't give it that homely feel that the HQ in Sacramento had. And he just knew that the office wouldn't have a couch for him to lie on.

Just when he began to wonder if anyone was actually coming to meet them, he saw four people stride confidently over to them; the type of confidence that comes with having home court advantage. The tallest, and clearly the leader among them shot them all a welcoming smile as he greeted them.

'Agents, welcome to Scotland Yard and the Metropolitan police. I hope that your journey wasn't too dreadful and apologies about the weather; you never get used to it. We look forward to working with you and sharing your expertise in this particular case.'

The CBI were stunned to say least. Whenever they were usually assigned to work with another team, even the local police force, they were given such a cold welcome, like they were an inconvenience or something. But the CID showed no signs of reluctance of bitterness towards the team; this was a first. The leader proceeded to introduce himself and the rest of the team.

'I'm DCI Harry Grimshaw and I'd like to introduce you to my esteemed colleagues; this DI Colin Dashwood, DS Samantha Jones and DC Nicola Green. And you must be Senior Agent Teresa Lisbon, if I'm not mistaken?' he stuck his hand out towards Teresa who was clearly taken aback to be greeted in such a warm manner.

'Uh, yes I am and we are the CIB, um I mean the CBI,' she was flustered, probably tired from all the travelling and lack of sleep, 'These are my colleagues; Agents Cho, Rigsby and Van Pelt. And this is our consultant Pat,'

'Patrick Jane, yes we all know who he is.' Nicola interrupted.

Jane couldn't help but grin at the prospect that the premier law enforcement agency in the United Kingdom had heard of his antics. 'Wow, this must be what it feels like to be famous.' He replied, which earnt him a sharp glare from Lisbon who was clearly worried about just what these people had heard about him.

'Let's just say that Harry here is dreading the amount of paper work that you will inevitabley cause him,' Nicola continued playfully. This remark caused the corners of Lisbon's mouth to form into a sly smile and she nodded at Harry Grimshaw with a look that said, _Yeah I know exactly what you mean pal. _

Jane took just a moment to observe his new colleagues, after all he seemed uneasy that they knew more about CBI then they knew about the CID. Nicola was clearly the new girl on the team; full of life and clearly very pleasant to work with. She reminded him a little bit of Van Pelt when she first started and the CBI. She looked a little young to be in such a job already; she couldn't have been older than 27, which told him that she was clearly a hard worker and had probably been crucial in a previous serious case to have been selected for such a role. She was about Lisbon's height with long blonde hair and a warm sunny face. Patrick could tell that she was from the South West of England and probably grew up in the countryside, by the sea, which explains her sunny outlook on life. She was stood rather close to her boss and they appear to be rather relaxed around each other; which he could tell from the looks given to them by Jones and Dashwood, that the rest of the CID resented this closeness and probably thought that they were sleeping together. Patrick knew better than that though; he could tell that they had a sibling relationship going on.

There was something about Samantha Jones that caught his eye; and not just because she was beautiful, which she was. She was about 5'6 feet tall, long brown hair and large brown eyes that held some kind of mystery within them. He couldn't help but feel captivated slightly but he also couldn't shake the feeling that they had met before; yet he couldn't quite place it. She caught him staring at her and shot him a brief smile, which made his heart flutter a little; something that Cho had noticed and he stifled a quick laugh.

Rigsby was currently shooting evil glances at Colin Dashwood, who was already making eyes at Van Pelt; much to her delight. He was about 6 feet tall, had perfectly coifed brown hair and a chiselled jaw line. Clearly a posh boy and came from a very rich family, hence the ridiculously over-priced Prada suit that he wore to work. This one was clearly going to come between Jane's plans to reunite Wayne and Grace on this trip.

He then turned his attention to Harry Grimshaw, the boss, who had surprisingly managed to coax a smile out of Lisbon. He was around late thirties, around 6'2, lean but obviously worked out at the gym a lot. He had sandy brown hair, which was slightly bleached by the sun so he had just been on holiday when you team that with the tan he currently sported. His deep blue eyes, which oddly matched the colour of Lisbon's dress, were kind and inviting yet held some kind of pain behind them, which Jane attested to the fact that this man was recently divorced.

'Shall we?' Harry gestured towards the large elevator and the teams eagerly followed in his suit. He shot a sideward glance at Lisbon as if to tell her that this was just as much her investigation as it was his. Jane felt slightly jealous at the way she smiled back at him; for some reason completely unbeknownst to him. He skipped up to the DCI and asked him a question he had been dying to ask since the plane hit the tarmac.

'So Harry, you wouldn't happen to have the makings of an excellent cup of tea would you?'

Harry laughed before responding, 'I'm sorry man, I may be British, but I actually can't abide tea. We do have an excellent batch of coffee brewing in the office at the moment.'

Lisbon let out a small gasp of excitement as they all piled into the glass elevator; that girl really was dangerously addicted to caffeine.


	4. Chapter 4

**Thanks for all the reviews; you guys are awesome. This is not the best chapter ever written, partly because, like Lisbon, I am coffee deprived and have just come home from work. Nevertheless, your reviews compelled me to update as soon as possible; keep them coming. **

**Disclaimer: Still don't own The Mentalist. **

Chapter Four:

After a tour of the office, which much to Jane's dismay did not include a couch, the team shared a debriefing from both Grimshaw and Lisbon as they shared what little information they each had about the case.

'So all we have is the fact that the two victims were shot with the same gun, bullet to the head after being tied to their desk chair with rope. Both men were powerful, rich and well connected with links to Red John's network.' Lisbon stated in tone that let everybody know that this was going to be an exteremly difficult case to close, with very little evidence to go on.

'If I may interject Agent Lisbon,' Colin stopped ogling Van Pelt long enough to contribute to the discussion, 'while we all know that these two men were part of Red John's network; the evidence we have is all circumstancial. Sure we have bank statements that hint at their shady dealings and a few coded messaged here and there but that's nothing concrete for us to go on. We have nothing basically.'

'Sure we do, if you just think a little logically.' Jane added whilst trying not to pull a face at the strong coffee he was being forced to drink; oh for a cup of tea.

Dashwood looked offended to have been spoken to in such a flippant and disrespectful manner. Rigsby, on the other hand appeared to have perked up immensely. It was obvious that he greatly disliked this posh Englishman already.

Lisbon glared at him and pleaded with him using her eyes. She really didn't want to get off on a bad foot with these people yet here he was, already offending everyone within a mile radius of him.

'I Think what is trying to say Colin,' came the husky voice of Samantha Jones who had remained quiet for the whole afternoon, 'Is the fact that making the link to Red John has taken a lot of time on our part looking through their personal, business and financial histories. It takes resources. Resources that we have; but not the sort of resources available to your regular guy.'

Jane nodded in understanding; he was glad that he wasn't the only person putting the peices together.

'And by that notion we are dealing with a killer who has connections, resources.' Added Nikki. Jane could practically see the cogs quickly spinning in her head. 'So we have two distinct possibilities. Either the killer is somebody equally well-connected, was a member of the Red John Network and is now taking out these men in order to prevent exposure himself. OR, the killer is well-connected and carrying out some vigilante mission to punish these men from assisting Red John for so many years.'

The room suddenly filled with a slight tension in the air at the mention of a vigilante for everybody knew exactly where Patrick Jane stood on the topic of exacting revenge on Red John. The CBI tried to avoid having conversations about that messy situation. Lisbon shuddered briefly at the memory of those events that occurred eighteen months ago. Sure, she had forgiven Jane for killing Red John; after all she knew she would have done the same if it had been a member of her family . Her and Jane were still as close as always, but there remained this giant elephant in the room that they never spoke of; because she knew that if she had to speak about it then she would simply get angry and she was worried about losing the bond that they shared. Frankly, her main objection to him seeking revenge all these years was not the legal issues but the fact that she was scared about him leaving the CBI. Of course she could never say this out loud or even admit it to herself.

'Good thinking,' Lisbon said, desperately trying to distract herself from thinking about Jane. 'So do we have any leads?' she asked, turning her attentions towards Harry.

'Well I have arranged interviews with Farnely's family and work associates tomorrow. His family have agreed to come here to the station, but half of us will have to mission it over to Canary Whaf to talk to the rich douchebag bankers at Smithson's bank. I should probably head up the team that goes there; I can't begin to tell you how difficult these guys are and to be honest they won't respond too well if the team interviewing them is lead by an American. No offence.'

'None taken. I'll stay here with a team to interview the family and gather background information. But we should mingle our teams together; balance out the expertise.'

'Exactly what I was about to suggest. Now how are we going to split this?'

The rest of the team sat on the edge of their seats; each equally eager yet nervous at the prospect of getting split up from their leader. The feeling was similar to that of waiting to be picked for a team on sportsday.

After much deliberation it was decided that Cho, being the team's best interrogator, would join Harry, Samantha and Colin at Smithson's bank and Lisbon would stay at Scotland Yard with Jane, Van Pelt, Rigsby and Nikki; who would incidentally do all she could to make sure their American guests became comfortable with their new surroundings.

'Actually Lisbon I think my talents are needed more with Harry and his team.' Jane chimed in, just when they thought that they had sorted everything out.

'What do you mean?' she replied, a little lost. She hadn't even thought twice about keeping him on her team; it was second nature, they always worked together where she could keep an eye on him. 'Don't you want to interview the families?'

'Meh, I'm more interested to meet his business associates. Plus I've always wanted to visit the docklands. Could be fun meeting the posh bankers who helped cause the recession.'

'Well as much as i want you to have fun I don't think that DCI Grimshaw is ready for your particular brand of crime fighting.'

'sure he is. He's a big boy; he can handle me. Right Harry?'

Caught off guard the DCI replied with a shy nod before shooting a playful wink at Lisbon adding, 'But you're helping me with the paperwork should anything go wrong.' This was the main reason Jane wanted to go with him; to get a clearer idea of the man who clearly had the hots for Lisbon. He also felt a certain pull towards Samantha and was intrigued to see her work.

Darkness quickly came, despite the fact that it was only half past seven in the evening, and everyone deduced that it would be better to call it a day and get a decent night's sleep.

Nikki then proceeed to hand each memer of the CBI a small envelope containing a two keycards. She really was very welcoming, Patrick thought. She was clearly one of those girls that made her way through life by genuinely being polite to people; no bitchiness there at all.

'Okay guys these envelopes contain your access passes to these Offices and your room keys at your hotel. We've booked you into the Westminster Loch. Kinda posh but Colin knows the owner so feel free to order anything from room service, free of charge, just don't go crazy. It's just around the corner so I'll take you there now and you can get some much needed rest. Plus being only five minutes from this location means that you have a longer lie-in.'

'You're very efficient Nikki.' Jane smiles. 'Can we take you back to Sacramento with us?'

'Do you know a good pub around here?' Rigsby asked tentatively, trying not to sound unprofessional. 'It's just that we're all still really buzzed from too much travel and too much coffee. I think we all need a glass of wine and a hot meal to help us actually feel sleepy.'

The rest of the CBI nodded in agreement.

'Actually there is a really good bar, restaurant area in your hotel,' Colin replied, 'In fact, how about we join you guys? A team that plays together, stays together,'

Rigsby looked ever so put out at Van Pelt's enthusiastic response to this suggestion; but nevertheless he didn't want to seem like a spoilsport to appeared to agree with this plan.

'You coming Harry?' Dashwood asked his boss as everybody began to gather their stuff together.

'Not this time mate I'm afraid. Paperwork. You guys have fun though and don't get carried away trying to impress our California friends; a hangover will not suffice tomorrow.'

As the CBI and CID teams made their way out of the Scotland Yard building they were greeted with yet another rainstorm.

'Oh looks like you'll be needing this Lisbon.' Jane said as he handed Lisbon the pink waterproof he had purchased for her which garnered laughs from everybody else.

'Right, off to the pub.' He quickly added, trying to ignore the death-ray that Lisbon was currently aiming his way. Some things never change no matter what side of the Atlantic they were on.

**Things to come in upcoming chapters: Jane insulting rich people, a bridget jone's style fight between two men, JISBON moments, how Lisbon will cope not having complete control, the CBI visiting famous London landmarks and MUCH MORE. Will happen faster with reviews ;)**


	5. Chapter 5

**So this chapter is purely Jisbon-based. It wasn;t always intended to be the just the two of them but it's such a sweet scene that I simply couldn't have anyone intrude. Thanks for the reviews, they mean a lot. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own the mentalist or peter pan.**

**Chapter Five**

Teresa Lisbon sat bolt upright in her bed. She was having great difficulty sleeping; she was nervous to say the least. She was out of the country for the first time in her life and having to share a case with people she doesn't know; it was an unnerving feeling that prevented her from getting some much needed rest.

She let out a huge sign as she saw that it was 5:30 in the morning. She had to be up in nearly two hours so definitely there was no chance of getting any sleep now. Her biggest worry, naturally, was how Jane would behave around Harry during today's scheduled interviews. Harry had been extremely generous in making Lisbon feel like it was just as much her investigation as his; he clearly wasn't one of the male cops who felt that women didn't belong in places on power, which was a rare thing in itself. However, if Jane pulls his usual crap then she feared that their warm welcome would quickly disappear.

It's true that she also felt uneasy when he worked with someone else. She couldn't explain it but she just felt different when he wasn't beside her, making sarcastic comments and offending witnesses. Those five months that he had spent in jail while they fought to get him free seemed to drag on for an eternity. Cases took a lot longer to solve and work at the CBI just wasn't fun anymore.

And just at that moment, when she was thinking about Jane, her phone buzzed violently against her bedside cabinet and she answered to hear the ever-so familiar voice of her consultant.

'Morning Lisbon, I knew you wouldn't be sleeping. Nervous huh?'

'How did you know I was awake?'

'Oh please, I know how your mind works. You're currently going over every worst case scenario in your head and thinking of ways to minimize the damage that I could cause on this investigation.'

'What can I say it's a default setting programmed into my brain ever since the day you starting working with me. What do you want anyway Jane?'

'Meet me outside the hotel in fifteen minutes.'

'Why would I want to do that?'

'Where's your sense of adventure Lisbon? Meet me there in fifteen minutes or I will come and personally drag you out of bed.' And with that he hung up the phone before she could snap back at him.

Knowing that he would stick to his word, Teresa promptly began to get changed into her usual business attire and wondering what on earth Jane had in store for her.

XxXx

Jane greeted Lisbon in his usually chirpy manner and proceeded to hand her a large, steaming cup of to-go coffee. He clearly hadn't gotten any sleep either.

'Where on earth are we going Jane?' Lisbon demanded as he led her out of the hotel lobby onto the cobbled streets of Westminster.

'For a walk.' He replied simply, as if no explanation was necessary.

'A walk?'

'Yes Lisbon, a walk. You know that activity whereby you place one foot in front of another and by doing so you end up not rooted to the spot.'

Lisbon grunted in annoyance. Living in California there was no need to walk anywhere; you needed to drive.

'And where is it we're going exactly?'

'Just to explore ; you'll see.' Jane replied in his usual evasive manner. Lisbon's controlling nature made it difficult for her to simply grasp the moment and be spontaneous.

As the two friends and colleagues walked through the heart of Westminster, the city began to awaken. The start of the early morning commute to work meant that Jane and Lisbon could just blend into the crowd. Jane couldn't help but notice that women were giving him the eye as they passed. Whilst he would always grieve for his late wife he was now toying with the possibility of falling in love again at some point down the road. Of course it would take a while to get that close to someone again; although he already had that closeness with a certain pint sized agent who was suddenly in awe of her surroundings.

'It looks amazing,' Lisbon ghasped like a small child on a school trip as they approached Big Ben. They had passed it in the car the previous day, of course, but it was something else entirely when stood beneath it. Despite it being the middle of August, a thick misty fog covered London's skyline; it was beautiful. Teresa felt a strange feeling in the pit of her stomach as recalled a fond childhood memory.

'What is it?' Jane asked.

'What's what?

'You're smiling like you've just remembered something nice; and i want to know just what's made you look so happy, that's all.'

And just like that, Teresa recalled the story that she didn't even know she had still remembered until it came flowing out of her mouth.

'Did you ever see Peter Pan?' she asked in a question that Jane was most certainly not expecting.

'Sure; I pride myself on having watched all the Disney films. As you know Lisbon I am one big kid.'

'Well it was my favourite film growing up,' as she continued Patrick felt a warm sensation come over him that was enough to shield him from the freezing cold London air; she never opened up about her childhood so he was touched that she was trusting him with something that was clearly a treasured memory.

'When I was about five years old I was really sick and had to stay off school for about a week. My mom brought me the video of Peter Pan to cheer me up; we must have watched it at least twice a day for the entire week.' Her eyes glistened with tears as she spoke about her mother.

'My favourite part of the whole movie was when Peter taught them how to fly and they flew over big ben,' she gestured upwards towards the large clock standing proudly, 'London looked so magical at the time. And anyway, since then her nickname for me was Tinkerbelle Tess.' She said, slightly blushing at this revelation.'

'Of course,' Jane replied warmly. 'You're little and very stubborn; just like Tinkerbelle herself.'

She smiled that rare smile on uninhibited happiness that never failed to melt his heart slightly.

'I had completely forgotten all about that,' she whispered.

'Well that's the funny thing about memories Teresa,' she looked slightly off-guard at the use of her first name, 'we never lose them entirely, the right trigger, and they come flooding back to you.'

They spent the next hour aimlessly walking around, exploring their new surroundings. They went a full circle down the South Bank, crossing over Tower Bridge and back down the other side. Jane acted as an un-official tour guide which sure made Lisbon laugh.

Topics of conversation varied on their little adventure; they talked about everything from musings on their new English counterparts to what they were most looking forward to seeing while in Britain. They eventually made it back to Scotland Yard just in time for the start of the working day.

It was closest the two of them had been in ages; since the Red John incident. As they made their way through the reception area she turned to him, meaning business again.

'Now you are to be on your best behaviour, do you understand.' She spoke as if she were his teacher and he the naughty schoolboy who constantly caused mischief.

He replied in mock disbelief and shock, 'Lisbon, I'm offended that you have to even ask such a question. I'm always on my best behaviour. Besides I need you to remember something.'

'Oh, and what's that.'

As Patrick skipped playfully towards the elevator he sung the famous Peter Pan song, _You can fly, you can fly, you can fly!_

Lisbon couldn't help but giggle at this display. London was growing on her already.

**So what do you think? Reviews please?**


	6. Chapter 6

**Sorry it had taken me soooooooooo long to update, have moved house and was deprived of internet access for a ridiculously long time. I plan on posting another chapter tomorrow to make amends : ) Thanks to everybody who has reviewed this story so far and to everybody who has alerted to this story, you guys rock! Keep the reviews coming!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own the Mentalist, sadly, but one can dream.**

**Chapter Six:**

Patrick had learnt many things during the course of the day that he spent at Canary Wharf.

Firstly, Cho was seriously the best interrogator ever. That poker face of his was on top form today as he ruthlessly interviewed each of Farnley's work colleagues; managing to trick two of them into admitting to embezzling thousands from the company; subsequently getting them fired. The CID were clearly impressed with such skills and Jane could even detect a faint smile form across Cho's face after being congratulated by DCI Grimshaw for doing such an exemplary job.

Secondly, none of these upper-middle class douche-bags had anything to do with Farnley's murder. Sure, they were rich bankers and in such an industry, everybody has a motive; but Farnley's death was significant, the body, as with Hartley's was not concealed and was left as a clear message. If anyone at Smithson's had committed the crime then they would simply have Farnley disappear.

The last thing that he learnt, as he was being thrown out of the tall office block by security guards, was that rich people were very easy to wind up.

Samantha had been assigned to take Jane back to Scotland Yard to debrief Lisbon and her team while Harry, Colin and Cho finished things up at the bank. Samantha was very stoic, very cool and calm. She hadn't so much as blinked when one of the interviewees made crude and sexist comments towards her; she simply carried on doing her job. At first Jane had just assumed her to be a female version of his dear Cho; but there was something quite unsettling about just how cool and collected she was at all times. However as they set off in the car, with her behind the wheel much to Jane's dismay, he saw the makings of a smile envelop on her face; albeit a small one.

'So you like winding up rich people huh?' she asked, while all the while not keeping her eyes off the road.

'Rich people. Arrogant people. Dumb people. Egotistical people. You name it; I can get under their skin.'

'And that's something you're proud of is it?'

'Well we must use the tools that God gave us Miss Jones. As much as I like winding people up; it's also a great way to get a sense of people's true character. Like if they have a violent temper or not. But we all have different skills and it's knowing how to use them. Take Cho for example. He played it cool and calm, made the guys so nervous that they began to trip up overthemselves and he got them to admit to embezzling without asking more than four questions'

A faint trace of a laugh escaped from Samantha's mouth before she could contain herself.

'He is good I'll give him that. I'm starting to worry for my reputation.'

'And what reputation would that be?' Jane was suddenly intrigued.

'They call me the Ice Queen.' She laughed. 'I must say it's not very original; but fairly accurate. I just think that at work it's best not to show too much of your personality shine through. Especially in a job such as this.'

'Outside of work you're quite the life of the party aren't you?' Patrick asked, although it was more of a statement.

'Maybe in my early twenties, Mr. Jane; my partying days are well behind me.' She said in a brief unguarded moment which didn't go unnoticed by Jane and he could see some sadness in her eyes. Trying to change the subject, she cleared her throat and asked. 'So, what do you make of the team so far?'

'Well your boss seems like a decent guy; sort of like the friendly arts teacher you would have at school. He clearly takes too much upon himself, taking on too much responsibility and therefore his life centres around his job.' A brief nod from Samantha told him that this analysis was spot on and he continued.

'Well Colin is your typical well-bred, well-educated boy from a well to do family. A bit of a ladies man, a player but not a bad guy; just a little bit insensitive to other people's feelings. His family clearly told him that to earn his share of the family fortune he would have to get a decent, respectable job hence why he became a policeman. Quite a good detective; but I can't understand how he has ended up in a higher ranking job than you... or Nikki for that matter.'

'Colin is connected; influence is influence.' Samantha stated and Patrick shot her an understanding smile. He would get so annoyed back in Sacramento about Bertrem giving Lisbon a hard time just because a suspect happened to be related to the attorney general or something; it was rich man's justice and he hated it. It was clear that nothing was different over here.

'Which just leaves little Nikki left. The youngest and newest addition to the team, and therefore the baby who is desperate to prove herself to everyone; promoted young but purely on merit, can be naive about the ways of the world which makes you get annoyed at her constantly and has therefore left her thinking that you don't like her.'

Samantha replied, very cool and calm and in a very matter of fact manner, 'I do like Nikki, in a way she's my favourite which is why I'm probably cold towards her.'

'She reminds you of a younger version of yourself.' Jane interjected in his usual fashion. 'She is a constant reminder of what you were like at that age; full of hope and optimism?'

Samantha didn't even need to reply, Jane could tell by the look on her face that he was bang on, as per usual. He still couldn't quite read her as much as he would like, she was a closed book to him. And by the focused look planted on her face she was clearly determined to remain that way.

Patrick found it frustrating that he could not quite place this woman. He was sure that they must have met before; but his memory palace was clearly failing him. How very peculiar.

xxXXxxXXxxXXxx

'Damn it!', Lisbon yelled as she slammed her blackberry on her desk.

'What's wrong, boss?' Van Pelt asked tentatively, although she already knew the answer to that question.

'Jane, of course,' and Van Pelt's suspicions were confirmed, 'That was Harry on the phone; Jane only went and got himself kicked out of a top financial institution after insulting all of the big wigs there. Honestly, he's like a naughty child.'

Van Pelt stifled a laugh, earning her a glare from Lisbon who was clearly worried about the fall out of all this; so she changed the subject. 'I finished those background checks on Farnley's family members?'

'Anything flagged?'

'Not really. I mean his youngest son, Devon, does indeed have a drug problem but we kind of gathered that from interviewing him. He's been caught in possession of heroin a few times but with a little case of rich man's justice the charges just disappeared. He also has a cast-iron alibi for the night of the murder.'

'And what about the wife?' Lisbon asked, a little strain of desperation in her voice; they were running out of leads and fast. 'Farnley had a mistress, well he had several, which would give her motive.'

'Wayne and Nikki are still in there talking to her,' Grace pointed in the direction of the interview room, 'she knew about the affairs, but she stayed for the sake of her children. She doesn't have any witnesses that can verify where she was at the time of the murder... but I don't think she had anything to do with it boss. She seems to... _nice_.'

Lisbon couldn't deny that Grace was right, besides she knew deep down that this was connected to Red John; she was just holding on to anything that made the case less complicated than it needed to be in the hopes that they could close this case fast and head on back to Sacramento.

Not being with Jane was making her feel uneasy. Although he was a constant pain in the ass, at least when with her she could at least try to keep him in check. But knowing that he was in a strange city, making some other cop's life hell was giving her a very large tension headache; at least, that was partly the reason. She hadn't been able to stop thinking about Jane all day, ever since their mini adventure this morning. She enjoyed it because it didn't feel like they were there for work. She wasn't his boss, he wasn;t her annoying consultant; they were just two people taking in the beautiful sights around them. Of course, the call from Harry had just reminded her that he was back to being that annoying pain in the ass.

It wasn't until Van Pelt spoke that Lisbon was brought out of her trance; man _that was a weird thought_, she said to herself.

'So, what did Harry say? Was he mad?' her eyes full of concern.

'Nah, he just said that i have to help him with the paperwork. Cho did good apparently, although no surprises there. At least one of us has made a good impression.'

'Oh i think more than one of us has made a good impression on DCI Grimshaw; if you catch my drift?' Van Pelt winked at her boss, all the while looking around to see if anybody else was listening.

Lisbon was dumbfounded. 'What on earth could you possibly mean by that Grace?'

Grace rolled her eyes, 'Oh COME ON, he blatantly has the hots for you. No wander he wants to help you with the ehm... _paperwork_.'

And with that statement Van Pelt swooped back into the interview to help Wayne and Nikki, leaving Lisbon sat alone, and extremely confused at her desk.

**So what do you think? Reviews please? Pretty please?**


	7. Chapter 7

**I promised another chapter and here it is. I'm trying to cause some tension and a bit of angst. Let me know if there is anything you want me to include in the story and I will try my best. The next chapter will involve some light relief regarding Rigsby and the gang indulging in some traditional British vs American banter so bear with me. Let me know what you think; all reviews are good reviews.**

**Disclaimer: Still not mine.**

**Chapter Seven**

It had been a long, difficult day for everyone in the CBI and the CID; and as far as everybody was concerned it was time to call it a night at around eight thirty in the evening.

Having spent the whole day questioning work colleagues and family members, the case hadn't progressed in the slightest; except for virtually ruling out any of these people as suspects leaving them with nothing to go on. Naturally the whole team felt deflated; especially Jane, who had been given the cold-shoulder treatment by Lisbon every since he arrived back at the MET headquarters. In hindsight, it probably wasn't the best idea to call her Tinkerbelle in front of everyone. Lisbon was staying behind with Grimshaw to finish up some paperwork while the others headed straight for the pub. Jane declined that offer; he wasn't in the mood for company at the moment. Instead he went on a walk around London, no particular destination in mind, he just went wherever his feet took him; his thoughts mulling over the last thing Lisbon had said to him that evening.

'Just leave me alone Jane.' She had said, amidst a pile of paperwork, when he attempted to apologise for his behaviour at the bank. Normally he would have continued to press her, but something about the way she looked at him told Jane that it was probably best to respect her request for now.

Why was she so mad with him? Sure, he had been an ass but no more than usual. He was especially hurt given the special moment that they had shared earlier in the morning. Usually he could get around Lisbon's annoyance with his sheer charm but he could tell that it probably went deeper than that. He laughed to himself; he was supposed to be a mind-reader for pity's sake, and here he was trying to think exactly what was going through Lisbon's mind and failing epically.

He had to admit though, that he quite liked it went he met people he couldn't read in an instant. As a man skilled in reading people's thoughts and behaviours it can be difficult to find someone to connect to. That's what first attracted him to his wife. From the moment he met her he was taken aback by the fact that he couldn't read her; it was intriguing and incredibly alluring. There had been other brief relationships before Angela came along, but nothing serious. He could always tell exactly what they were thinking and that's never a good thing when it comes to women's minds. But when Angela came along he saw a chance for a proper relationship. One whereby they slowly discovered each other's intimate secrets and he no longer felt alone in the world.

After she was cruelly taken from this life, he resigned himself to a life of solitude once more. That is until he became involved with the CBI and met another enigma by the name of Teresa Lisbon. Sure, she was easy to read at first, but gradually over time he found it increasingly difficult to read what was going on inside her head. This was perhaps the reason why he never tired of her company. Still, in moments like these when he genuinely needed to know what he had done wrong, it was incredibly frustrating.

xxXXxxXXxxXXxx

Lisbon felt exhausted. Maybe it was the combination of jet-lag, lack of sleep and a case that showed no signs of progressing; but she felt drained.

She knew that she had been harsh on Jane when he returned to the office earlier. She wasn't even that mad at him really; she just wasn't in the right frame of mind to be dealing with him right now. She had felt a pang of regret for treating him so coldly, especially seeing the look upon his face when he left, almost like a lost child. Damn, there she was again, thinking about Jane again. This was partly why she felt like she needed some space away from him at the moment. However, as she was currently sat with Harry, dealing with the paperwork for Jane's behaviour, she doubted that was possible.

Harry approached their joint desk with two piping hot mugs of coffee to help get them through it. 'Thanks for your help Teresa,' he said, sounding equally as worn out as she was, 'I hate the amount of paperwork that comes with this job.'

'Agreed! We should be out there catching the bad guys, not pushing pencils.' She replied with a faint smile that she could just about muster. It was nice that someone knew exactly what she went through on a daily basis. What was Van Pelt thinking suggesting that Harry had the hots for her? He simply understood how hard her job was and they shared that in common.

'You don't happen to have anything stronger do you?' she added without even thinking, almost taken aback that she had even said it. The coffee in front of her didn't look like it would be enough to get her through this evening.

Harry let out a small, understanding laugh as he opened one of his drawers and proceed to place a bottle of Tequila in front of her, complete with two shot glasses.

'Prehaps this will make the form filling that much more bearable?'

'You read my mind,' Lisbon exclaimed, 'although not that that I justify drinking in the workplace it's just...'

'Hey, we're technically off-duty now anyway,' Harry interjected in order to quash her guilt, 'besides I think we both need to let loose a little bit.'

Lisbon couldn't stop the huge grin that made its way across her face and wasted no time in pouring them both a shot.

xxXXxxXXxxXXxx

The city was freezing at night. Jane realised that he was attracting many concerned looks from members of the public; all of whom were wrapped up in coats while Jane wandered round with just his usual three-piece suit to keep him sheltered from the cold.

He had no idea how long he had been walking for, it must have been ages because he came back virtually full circle and was now approaching Westminster Abbey. It really was a sight to behold. This was one advantage that London definitely had over California; the sights that are steeped in so much history. The amount of famous weddings and funerals that had taken place here along with many other historical events that shaped not only British, but also world history.

As he drew closer to the church that stood directly next to the abbey he saw that the doors were open. In a combination of pure curiosity and need to shelter himself from the cold he ventured inside.

Patrick Jane had never really been a fan of churches. Well, why would he be? He wasn't a believer for one thing, and he always associated them with death; the last time he had ventured inside a church was the day of his wife and daughter's funeral and that was because his wife had been a believer her whole life- it was only right to honour those beliefs in her death.

The church was virtually empty, except for a few people lighting candles in honour of people. Then, without thinking, he made his way over the stand of candles himself and proceeded to light two candles. As he did he thought of his wife and daughter; and the gaping hole that he felt in his heart right now. Beautiful memories of their first vacation together, in this magical city, caused a single tear to run down his cheek. More tears would have certainly followed suit had it not been for a hushed voice that suddenly spoke to him, breaking him out of his solitary trance.

'What are you doing here?'

Jane looked up to see Samantha Jones, with both a look of concern and astonishment on her face as she too lit a candle while clearly resisting the urge to cry.

**Coming up: Some crossed wires between Jane/Lisbon and Samantha/Harry, ALSO and an evening in the pub with Risby, cho, Van Pelt, Nikki and Colin...**


	8. Chapter 8

**Thanks so much for all the reviews so far guys, it makes me want to update faster so keep them coming. I hope you like this chapter, it was one of my favourite to write so far.**

**Disclaimer: Still don;t own the mentalist.**

**Chapter Eight.**

'Hey man I asked if you could order me some chips. What the hell is this?' Rigsby asked Colin in confusion as he stared down at his plate of piping hot fries.

'Um, those are chips my yankee friend,' Colin replied in a tone that was just a little too patronizing for Rigby's liking.

'No they're not, those are fries.' Rigsby felt himself getting annoyed. Deep down he knew that he was just picking on things to be annoyed at because Van Pelt was clearly taken in by his charm and ridiculously over the top posh accent.

'Oh you mean crisps?' Nikki interjected in her usual chirpy self, obviously trying to diffuse the obvious tension that had been brewing between the two men. 'I never understood why you call them chips. Anyway would you like me to get you some crisps? I'm heading back to the bar anyway.'

'No that's quite alright Nikki, he'll make do with what he's got,' Van Pelt insisted before turning her attention towards Rigsby, 'You love fries... sorry, _chips_, so just deal with it.' She looked at him with eyes that seemed to say, _stop acting like a spoilt brat, you're embarrassing me_.

Rigsby huffed in defeat and he felt his heart sink a little bit. Ever since they had arrived at the pub Grace had done nothing but sit and giggle like a school girl while Colin indulged her with tales of his family estate and the shenanigans he got up to at whatever over priced private school he went to. He downed another pint of beer, his third in less than half an hour, whilst resisting the urge to teach Colin a few life lessons in manliness.

'I just love the way you guys talk.' Van Pelt squealed, she herself had indulged in a few too many drinks. 'You just sound so elegant and classy.'

Rigsby attempted to distract himself by joining in with Cho and Nikki's discussion. As much as he tried to concentrate, however, he couldn;t block out Van Pelt. How could she be into this guy? He's so not her type, well at least he thought so anyway. If he was being honest, he didn't feel that he knew that much about Grace anymore. Ever since the whole O'Laughlin debacle, they had drifted further apart and it was getting increasingly difficult to understand her. What if she slept with this Colin guy? Then the chances of his heart breaking again were sure to increase and he knew that he could never summon up the courage to ask her out again.

He was broken out of his trance by the sound of Nikki asking him and Cho a question. 'So how are you guys liking London so far?'

'Terrible weather.' Cho replied quickly and in his usual stoic voice. 'But a nice city nonetheless.'

'And of course the lovely company,' Rigsby added, throwing a cheeky wink in Nikki's direction, although in his slightly tipsy state probably looked more like a twitch. In his jealous state he contemplated the idea of using Nikki to distract himself over his issues with Van Pelt and Prince Charming across the table. Maybe he could use a little vacation fling? It couldn't hurt, and perhaps might even make Grace realise what she had lost and then he would have her back in his arms where she belonged. Nikki was attractive, friendly, funny; and clearly up for a good time.

After about an hour of shameless flirting, and many, many pints later, Rigsby felt Cho's hand on his shoulder. 'I think it's time we got you some water Rigs,'.

Without hesitation Cho led Rigsby away from the table and led him out of earshot from the others.

'What the hell are you playing at?' The stoic agent gave Rigsby one of his infamous glares which made Wayne feel like he was a naughty child being told off by a parent or an older brother.

'What do you mean?'

'Oh come off it man, hitting on Nikki like that. It's not cool and you need to stop it now.'

'Why? Because you're into her too?' he attempted to jest. 'Besides she seems quite responsive to me.'

'Okay, firstly she only seems responsive to you because she's a nice girl who doesn't want to embarrass you in front of everyone. And secondly, I couldn't care less if you actually just wanted to have a fling with her. But using her as bait to lure Van Pelt back is just not on.'

'Who are you, Pane all of a sudden?'

'Huh?'

'Oh, i meant to say Patrick but then i started to say Jane; Pane!' Rigsby laughed to himself, confirming Cho's theory about how drunk his fellow agent was. This was precisely why Cho didn't drink; it turns people into complete idiots and Rigsby was living proof of this.

'Right I think it's time to call it a night.' He said before making his way back to the table to gather up his and Rigsby's stuff.

'Oh you guys going?' Colin asked, feigning disappointment, as he was clearly glad at the opportunity to have the beautiful red-haired agent all to himself.

'Yeap, afraid so. I think Rigsby has had a little too much to drink. I'm glad I'm not him in the morning.' He gestured at Wayne who was currently trying to stay upright, swaying back and forth and muttering gibberish.

'I'll help you, besides I'm going to call it a night anyway.' Nikki bolted upright from her chair; she clearly did not want to be left feeling like a gooseberry with Colin and Grace. After they said their goodnight's, Cho and Nikki tried their best to navigate Rigsby, who was becoming increasingly incoherent, down the cold streets of London back to their hotel.

'Are you going to be okay getting home?' Cho asked nikki, while attempting to support Rigsby's tall frame.

'Yeah, I'll be fine.' I only live ten minutes away from the station so i'll just walk once I've helped you drop off this big lump.' She said, gesturing at Wayne.

'No, I'll get you a cab; can't be too careful.' Cho said, ever the gentleman, 'Hey, thanks for playing along with Rigs tonight. As you can probably tell he has some issues.'

'Please, I'm a detective; it wasn't difficult to notice that he's clearly hurting over Grace. Besides I didn't want to give Colin anymore ammunition than he already has. I wouldn't worry about her though. Colin's harmless even if he is a douchebag.'

As they continued their way down past the station, Nikki and cho's conversation was interrupted by Rigsby shouting complete nonsense and pointing in some random direction.

'Hehe, look it's the Bosbin, I mean Loss... Tisbon!'

'What on earth is wrong with you?' Cho was beginning to lose patience with his friend.

'Teresa Lisbon, the boss,' he managed to state clearly as he pointed towards a man and a woman walking out of the station with their arms around each other.

'Man that's not the boss, as if she...' Cho's voice tailed off as he could very clearly see that the woman in question was indeed Lisbon... with Harry's arms around her. The two were laughing and joking, being very affectionate with each other. Much to Cho's relief they had gone unnoticed as he observed his boss in a whole other light. She looked happy, maybe a fling was just what he needed to pull herself out of the foul mood she had clearly been in since landing here.

'oh my god that was so obviously going to happen,' Nikki gasped, 'Talk about fostering better international relations.'

Cho laughed at this statement. As they continued to walk, Rigsby pointed out another strange sighting. Cho was certain that this must definitely be a drunken figment of Rigby's imagination. But lo and behold, there was Patrick Jane sat on a bench having what appears to be a very deep and intimate conversation with DC Samantha Jones. What on earth was going on with everybody? Without wanting to be seen by the consultant, Cho and Nikki got Rigsby back and tucked up into the bed of his hotel room as quickly as possible.

Once they had made sure Wayne was safely asleep, with no danger of throwing up and choking on his own vomit the entered the hallway to discuss the night's events.

'So... you're boss and my boss, Patrick and Samantha, Colin and Grace, Rigsby and well... alcohol. Seems everybody bonded with someone tonight.' Nikki yawned, it had been a long night.

'Huh, it seems that way.' Cho added, although still astounded by the image of seeing Jane that close with somebody. It was a rare sight to behold. Still, he was bummed that he had spent a night in London having to babysit Rigsby. With that thought in mind he made a very bold suggestion.

'So I guess you and I should hook up tonight then.' He stated in a very matter of fact way.

Nikki was clearly not offended by the upfront way Cho just addressed this matter, which he liked in a woman. A small mischievous smile enveloped her lips. 'No strings?'

'No strings.' He confirmed.

'You're place or mine?' They understood each other. None of them wanting to be the only ones on their team not getting any action.

'Well my room is two seconds down this hallway so that seems to be the obvious choice.' And with that, Cho led Nikki to his hotel room. Just because Rigsby wasn;t in the right frame of mind to have a holiday fling doesn't mean that Cho wasn't.

**So what do you guys think? The next chapter will focus on Jane and Lisbon and the events leading up to what Cho and the gang witnessed, from Jane and Lisbon's perspective. All may not be what it seems... Please review : )**


	9. Chapter 9

**Hey guys, hope everybody is enjoying the Chritstmas break. So apologies for not updating for what seems like forever. Uni work has been hectic and my laptop decided to break down on me. Now that I have it back you can expect regular updates. All reviews are greatly appreciated. This chapter takes place directly after chapter seven, as did chapter eight but this time from both Jane and Lisbon's perspective. **

**Disclaimer: Not mine, maybe for Christmas though...**

**Chapter Nine**

'What are you doing here?' Samantha repeated.

'I could ask you the same question.' Jane replied.

Samantha backed away from the candles and made her way over to sit in one of the pews, Jane accompanied her.

'I guess you're here for the same reason as myself, that is lighting a candle for somebody that you love and is no longer with you,' Jane stated quietly.

Samantha nodded in agreement before the tears began streaming down her face.

'I lost my brother ten years ago today,' she hushed quietly; 'This is just something I do once in a while to remember him by.'

All of a sudden, it made sense to Jane; why she seemed so cold and distant and why she had that look of familiarity to him. She looked familiar because he could recognise the pain he himself felt. It was why he always tended to stay away from the victim's families on cases; because it reminded him all too clearly of the pain he was still living through every single day. When you yourself had gone through loss in your life, you could always spot someone who was experiencing the same kind of emotion. Maybe that is where the saying, misery loves company, comes from.

'Murder?' he asked, although he already knew the answer.

Samantha merely nodded in reply.

'What happened, if you don't mind me asking? Jane could sense that she was resistant to talk about it but he continued nonetheless. 'Believe me; it helps to talk about it sometimes.'

Samantha looked at Jane, his eyes seemed so open and full of promise, something about him made her open up about the pain she had experienced; she had read all about Jane and therefore knew his past, the pain and guilt he must be living through. It was this feeling that allowed her to open up to him; something that she rarely does with anyone.

Samantha cleared her throat as an attempt to prevent the tears from falling further. 'My brother, James, well he was my hero; my big brother,' Jane saw he eyes light up at the mere mention of James' name, 'He was a policeman, a detective and a bloody good one at that. He was the reason i got into the force in the first place.' Her face fell again as she began to slowly recount her story and Jane sat there and listened intently, 'Anyway he was looking into this network of killers, they had been going around the city, kidnapping young girls from wealthy families and killing them once the ransom had been paid. Nobody had managed to lay a finger on them before James came along, but like i said he was a bloody good detective. He arrested one of the many men involved in the gang who gave him a tip-off as to where their safe house was...'

All of a sudden, her voice became shaken with emotion and the tears fell faster down her cheeks.

'But the tip-off turned out to be an ambush and James was murdered?' Jane interjected, sympathy laden in his voice.

Samantha nodded, her whole body trembling with grief. And then Jane did something he never usually does; he put a comforting arm around her and attempted to sooth her clearly troubled soul.

After a few minutes Samantha continued, 'Not just him but his whole team, dead. Killed in a cold blood in a filthy ambush by a bunch of evil men who feed off fear. I, myself, hadn't been a policewoman for very long and my unit was called out to the safe house where there had been reports of gunfire and screaming...'

'And it was you who discovered your brother's body?' Jane whispered.

'Yes, ten years ago today.'

xxxXXXxxxXXXxxxXXXxxx

'Man this tequila is good stuff!' Lisbon exclaimed as she finished her third shot.

'Of course it is,' Harry laughed, 'I wouldn't try and fob you off with the cheap stuff now would I?'

The tequila was certainly helping with the mountain of paperwork that they had to get through, although after a few shots Teresa had to make doubly sure that she could still write legibly and that her spelling didn't become too atrocious. But after only two hours it was all done.

'So I guess that this is a regular occurrence for you, all this paperwork? Since you work with Patrick on a regular basis?'

'Yes, yes it is. But I don't mind the majority of the time. I mean he does close A LOT of cases.'

'So I've heard. We've heard all about your team on this side of the Atlantic. You're putting the rest of us to shame. They must love you over in Sacramento.'

'You'd think so but no.' Teresa said, a little startled. 'We either piss off the local sheriff's department because they feel that we are just spotlight stealers or we end up in massive trouble for pissing off someone who happens to be related to someone who plays golf with the Attorney General or some crap like that. So believe it or not the one good thing to come out of this trip is meeting someone who actually gets where I'm coming from you know?'

Harry poured them another shot of Tequila, the last in the bottle, much to their disappointment.

'Damn we got through that quickly.' Lisbon mumbled, disappointment laden in her voice.

'Yes we did. Fancy heading to this bar I know just around the corner. Great crows, great music and cheap drinks. What could be better?'

Lisbon was caught completely off guard. Was he asking her out? What should she say? Rejecting him in her usual standoff fashion would do nothing to improve trans-Atlantic relations, but accepting his offer would be completely un-professional. She didn't even know what she actually wanted to do herself. Sure, Harry was attractive and during the evening her mind had indeed wandered off to naughty thoughts involving the pair of them- she was a woman after all. Truth be told she was a woman who needed a little male company from time to time. She had a casual understanding with Mashburn whereby if he was in the country and she was feeling particularly stressed then they would hook up but these encounters where very few and far between. Maybe a holiday fling is exactly what she needed right now, things at work- and with Jane had been weird lately. As her thoughts turned to Jane she felt Harry lightly touch her hand, shocking her back to reality.

'Teresa, are you okay?'

'Uh, yeah sorry mind went blank for a moment there. Listen, I'm not sure that this,' she gestured at the pair of them, 'is the best idea. I mean we don't want anything to compromise our abilities while on this case.'

Harry let out a small laugh, and Lisbon was left with the feeling that she had just made a fool out of herself.

'Teresa, I wasn't hitting on you. Sure, If circumstances were different then I would definitely think about it. You're a beautiful woman but I was simply thinking that we could do with some light relief. I can tell that working with Jane isn't the easiest thing in the world and trust me when I say that I have a vague understanding of what you're going through.'

'I'm sorry, god I feel so embarrassed,' Lisbon felt her cheeks go red either from the alcohol or the embarrassment. 'What do you mean you know what I'm going through?'

'I'll tell you all about it, but first we need more drinks.'

'You're on.'


End file.
